Sales of imported vinyl sheet, tiles and planks grew 26.3 percent in volume to 1.6 billion square feet and 14.8 percent in value to $877.3 million in the U.S. last year, according to Catalina Research.

Average square foot pricing for imported vinyl flooring also declined 9.8 percent to 55 cents last year, according to Catalina Research.

“The sharp increase in import shipments reflects the growing popularity of luxury vinyl tile (LVT) in the residential replacement market. As a result, resilient flooring manufacturers increased their reliance on this market,” said Stuart Hirschorn, director of research, Catalina Research.

However, the trend is showing signs of shifting once again as U.S.-based vinyl floor suppliers such as Armstrong, Congoleum, IVC US, Mannington and Tarkett continue investing in, and shifting more production back to their domestic facilities, said Hirschorn.

“Domestic suppliers have efficient processes and their payroll expense is inline with industry averages,” he said. “If vinyl floor suppliers want to manufacturer here, labor won’t scare them away. These plants are large and very efficient.”

Still, the sheer popularity of LVT insures a steady stream of importers will continue to rely on sourced product from Asia to fulfill demand with low-cost product.

Thomas Baert, president and CEO of Shanghai-based ChinaFloor, said, “We added LVT to our laminate and wood offering in 2011 and that category is turning out to be much bigger than we ever thought it would be. We had to double our capacity this year. The move to LVT is a clear trend in America and there’s still a lot more room for growth. It can go into more places than wood and laminate.”

Now that imports account for half of U.S. vinyl floor sales volumes, leading suppliers are concerned that inferior products containing inconsistent ingredients – particularly with click LVT originating out of Asia – will blemish the category’s reputation.

“This is where the value of a brand comes in, especially a brand retailers know they can trust,” said Mara Villanueve-Heras, vice president of marketing, Armstrong.